Synopsis:One dirty-talking detective and one feisty crime lab technician collide in the second installment to the sizzling NOLA Heart series! Mixing business with pleasure just got a little hotter down in the Big Easy …

Nathan Danvers has cultivated a certain, sexy reputation among the ladies in New Orleans. As a former marine and current detective for the New Orleans P.D., Nathan is just fine with being the guy women take home to bed, but not the guy they take home to meet the parents. It’s exactly what he wants–until he spots the black-haired beauty, Jade.

Jade Harper is over men. After four years too many with her ex, she’s ready for a fresh start. Goodbye Miami; hello New Orleans. Everything is perfect, including her new job with the NOPD–until she meets Nathan Danvers. Jade isn’t looking for Mr. Right–hell, she’s not even looking for Mr. Right Now–but this hot cop has a way of blurring the lines between lust and love. Will he tempt her to take a chance? Or will the shadows lingering in Nathan’s dark eyes prove that some closely guarded secrets are better left hidden?

Review: I had had a good time with the first volume and I was curious to discover this second one!

Jade finally had everything she ever wanted, she left Miami, the boyfriend she didn’t love, and all her life to start a new one. Thus, thanks to an old friend of her father’s, she found a job in New Orleans and became a technician for the police. And that’s also how she meets with Nathan Danvers. But here it is, if they are immediately attracted to each other, she has fired a cross on men and he only wants one-night stands. But it goes further, Nathan seems to be hiding secrets, something he keeps deep inside and doesn’t share with anyone.

If I had a little trouble getting into the story at first, I had a good time with the characters and the story. We get caught up in an investigation where Jade and Nathan will be more or less involved and they will try to find out who the culprit is and I admit that I didn’t expect such a turnaround in the end!

It was a pretty nice romance, with characters you can connect to quite easily. I’m curious to read the next one!

Synopsis: Number-crunching Velma Johnson’s perfectly planned life is right on course.

That’s a lie. Sure, she’s got the lucrative job. She’s got the posh apartment. But her sister nabbed Velma’s Mr. Right. There has to be a man out there for Velma. Hopefully, one who’s hunky, wears pressed suits, and has a diversified financial portfolio. He’ll be exactly like, well… her sister’s new fiancé.

Badass biker Brek Montgomery blazes a trail across the country, managing Dimefront, one of the biggest rock bands of his generation. With the band on hiatus, Brek rolls into Denver to pay a quick visit to his family and friends. But when Brek’s sister suddenly gets put on bed rest, she convinces Brek to take over her wedding planning business for the duration of her pregnancy.

Staying in Denver and dealing with bridezillas was not what Brek had in mind when he passed through town, but there is one particular maid-of-honor who might make his stay worthwhile.

Velma finds herself strangely attracted to the man planning her sister’s wedding. Problem is, he ticks none of the boxes on her well-crafted list. Brek is rough around the edges, he cusses, and doesn’t even have a 401(k). But trying something crazy might get her out of the rut of her dating life—so long as she lays down boundaries up front and sticks to her plan…

I love getting into the heads of my characters, and it’s been months since I last got to work on Brek and Velma’s story! Doing a little character interview is so much fun! I hope you enjoy it, too!

An exclusive interview with Brek and Velma of Going Down on One Knee:

Tell us a little about yourself? What’s your occupation/job?

Velma: I’m a financial planner and I help people plan for the future with insurance options and investments. It’s really important to think about the what-ifs in life, you know? Sometimes we think that things will always be okay and that’s just not true. I can’t even tell you how good it makes me feel to help people ensure their future is protected.

Brek: I manage a band and run a bar.

Do you have any tattoos or birthmarks?

Brek: Yes.

Velma: I have one, a lily that Brek drew for me. I love it and it reminds me of all the reasons we are together. It’s also really special because Brek drew it. Getting a tattoo hurts like the dickens, but it was totally worth it.

Did you have a nickname as a kid?

Velma: Can we not discuss that?

Brek: She’s sensitive because her family calls her Velvet, but I think it’s pretty. People always called me Brek.

Favorite snack food?

Velma: Suckers. I especially love the blue razzleberry flavor and green apple. Popcorn is good too—not at the same time as the suckers.

Brek: I like ‘em all.

Do you work out?

Velma: Not really. Sometimes I go swimming with Brek—our apartment building has a rooftop pool.

Brek: Yep.

Your idea of a fun date?

Velma: Brek likes to take me to musicals. I love them! Especially, the old ones, they’re my favorite.

Brek: I’m good watching TV at home, but she likes to go to the theater, and I like to be where she is, so that’s what we do.

Favorite type of music or band?

Velma: I like Justin Timberlake and some country music.

Brek: Despite that, I still love her. I’m more of a rock ‘n roll, Dimefront kind of guy.

Final Question: What was the first thing that attracted you to each other?

Secret McQueen has been many things in her life: head of the Vampire Tribunal, werewolf queen twice over, bounty hunter, fighter, lover. She’s been the hunter and the hunted. Hell, she even died once.

One thing she never thought she’d be, however, was a normal human. Because “normal” was never a word to apply to her.

Now, Secret’s a former vampire/werewolf-hybrid living in a human’s body. She continues to answer the call of the supernatural, working for an elite FBI special unit designed to help the general public accept the existence of the creatures that used to only be found in nightmares. She’s happily married to the man of her dreams.

But when her old vampire mentor Sig goes missing, and her former beau Holden Chancery comes calling for help, Secret will be pulled out of her new sunny existence and sent back into the nightlife she once knew so well.

She’ll find herself asking if there’s any room for humanity in a world full of monsters.

And she might find there’s more than a little monster left in her, still.

Review: The series had ended a few years ago on Volume 8. We had a real end and I loved it a lot. Besides, I really liked this series, and I had a great time with each volume. Also, I was curious to see what the author was going to propose. It is very rare for an author to return to a finished series and I did not know what to expect.

Secret is no longer at home, she is no longer living with Desmond, but she is now working in the City of Angels in a special FBI unit to deal with the supernatural creatures that are now out in the open. She does not want to go home, and yet when Holden comes to ask for her help because Sig is gone, she does not hesitate to go back to investigate and to try to find her mentor.

I was very happy to find the characters in the series and follow them for a new story. And Harold, the demon? I loved him. However, at the same time I felt that it was not the ones I had come to know. I did not necessarily understand, knowing how she was, that she decided to live in another city and especially far from Desmond. Their link is only through phone calls. No, I did not find my characters or their natures and I was a little sad. But I think it may be difficult to start on something like this and I feel that it is rather a transition volume. This is also why I am curious to see what the author will propose later. But it’s true that I was a little destabilized …

Word of Abby’s talents reading tarot cards has reached a mob boss who wants her help in some business matters and he doesn’t take no for an answer. When the police seek out her psychic intuition to shed light on a masked man who’s been attacking women, Abby finds herself working both sides of the law on her own, leading her to wonder, why didn’t I see this coming?

An Easy Death (Gunnie Rose, 1) – Charlaine Harris

The beloved #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Sookie Stackhouse series, the inspiration for HBO’s True Blood, and the Midnight Crossroad trilogy adapted for NBC’s Midnight, Texas, has written a taut new thriller—the first in the Gunnie Rose series—centered on a young gunslinging mercenary, Lizbeth Rose.

Set in a fractured United States, in the southwestern country now known as Texoma. A world where magic is acknowledged but mistrusted, especially by a young gunslinger named Lizbeth Rose. Battered by a run across the border to Mexico Lizbeth Rose takes a job offer from a pair of Russian wizards to be their local guide and gunnie. For the wizards, Gunnie Rose has already acquired a fearsome reputation and they’re at a desperate crossroad, even if they won’t admit it. They’re searching through the small border towns near Mexico, trying to locate a low-level magic practitioner, Oleg Karkarov. The wizards believe Oleg is a direct descendant of Grigori Rasputin, and that Oleg’s blood can save the young tsar’s life.

As the trio journey through an altered America, shattered into several countries by the assassination of Franklin Roosevelt and the Great Depression, they’re set on by enemies. It’s clear that a powerful force does not want them to succeed in their mission. Lizbeth Rose is a gunnie who has never failed a client, but her oath will test all of her skills and resolve to get them all out alive.

Bayou Born (Foundling, 1) – Hailey Edwards

Her beginning may be our end…

Deep in the humid swamps of the Mississippi bayou, a mysterious, half-wild child is dragged just in time from the murky waters. She has no memories, no family and is covered in strange markings, the meaning of which no one is able to decipher. Adopted by the policeman who rescued her, Luce Boudrou follows him into the force, determined to prove herself in the eyes of those who are still suspicious.

However, there’s more of a battle ahead than Luce could possibly imagine. She may be an orphan without a past, but no one – including Luce herself – could ever be prepared for the truth of her dark, powerful destiny…

Brand new urban fantasy series by Hailey Edwards, bestselling author of the Gemini and Black Dog series. Perfect for fans of Jennifer Estep, Darynda Jones and Ilona Andrews.

Synopsis: Laws of Engagement for dealing with an Ex:
Rule #1: Don’t give into temptation for a kiss just to see if they taste the same.
Rule #2: No clothing removal. Seriously, don’t take them off.

Twelve years and too many pairs of stilettos later, Shaelyn Lawrence is back where she started: New Orleans. She’s returned only to take care of her grandmother, and after that? She’s out, hopefully long before she sees irresistible Brady Taylor, the boy who stomped all over her heart. But when a family member approaches her for help, there’s only one person she can to turn to…and he’s just as infuriatingly sexy as she remembers. Oh boy.

New Orleans Detective Brady Taylor has his sights on the finish line: getting promoted to sergeant. Nothing, and no one, is getting in his way–except that he didn’t prepare for her return, the girl who left him without a word. Resisting Shaelyn has never been his strong suit, and now all he can think about is stripping her out of her f*ck-me heels and kissing the lipstick off her sassy mouth. And when she asks him for help, he’s forced to decide between his career and the woman he’s never stopped loving.

Rule #3: Don’t even think about falling in love again…

Review: I did not know the author but how to resist a romance set in New Orleans? I love this setting and I admit that I am always very intrigued! And I like “second chances” romances, it’s always nice to see two characters ending up like that.

Shaelyn did not think she would ever come home, but when her grandmother tells her she’s sick, she quickly comes back to help her. Until she understands that all this is staged so that she crosses the road of the only boy who broke her heart 12 years ago. But now, their meetings are complicated. They have rancor points against each other. They are suspicious, and do not want to fall back into the same pattern. They are scared and yet there is something too.

I liked this novel, they are both wrong but they are also touching. Brady seems to be a big guy and yet we see that he has a very present sensitivity and is afraid of being hurt again just like her. Shae is trying to run away from her past to start a new life and is very scared to become attached to someone and even more so if that person is Brady.

It was a nice novel and I had a good time with the story. I am curious to discover others of the series.